Icon Editor Tasks
Getting Started with Icon Editor
Manipulating Images within Icon Editor
These instructions assume that you are using a mouse. Most tasks can
also be done without a mouse.
See Keyboard Shortcuts
for the Desktop for more information.
To Start Icon Editor
starting: Icon Editor
Icon Editor: starting
Click the arrow control above the Front Panel Text Editor control.
In the Personal Applications subpanel, click the Icon Editor control.
Icon Editor starts with an empty drawing area.
Other Ways to Start Icon Editor
opening: icon for editing
icons: opening for editing
Icon Editor: opening icon for editing
You can also start Icon Editor with an icon already loaded:
In an open File Manager window, double-click the icon file to open it.
Or, drop an icon file on the Icon Editor control in the Personal
Applications subpanel.
Or, select Icon Editor from the Desktop Apps in Application Manager.
To Draw an Image
drawing icon image
icons: drawing
Select a drawing tool (such as the pencil, circle, or line).
Select a color (static color, static gray, or a dynamic color).
Click in the drawing area and begin drawing with the tool you've selected.
See Also
To Draw a Filled Image
drawing filled image
icons: drawing filled image
Select the Fill Solids check box below the tool palette.
The rectangle, polygon, circle, and ellipse tools change from outlines
to solids in the tool palette.
Select a solid drawing tool.
Select a color (static color, static gray, or a dynamic color).
(See .)
Begin drawing with the tool you've selected.
When you release to finish drawing the object, all pixels contained
within the boundaries of the object become the selected color.
See Also
To Draw Freehand Lines or Pixels
line: drawing
Select the Pencil tool from the palette.
To draw individual pixels, click in the drawing area.
To draw freehand lines, click in the drawing area and drag. Release
to finish the line.
See Also
To Draw a Straight Line
line: drawing
Select the Line tool from the palette.
Click in the drawing area and drag to stretch the line.
Release to draw the line.
See Also
To Draw a Rectangle
rectangle:drawing
Select the Rectangle tool from the palette.
Click in the drawing area and drag to stretch the outline of the
rectangle.
Release to finish the rectangle.
See Also
To Draw a Circle
circle: drawing
Select the Circle tool from the palette.
Click in the drawing area and drag to stretch the outline of the
circle.
Release to finish the circle.
See Also
To Erase an Area
erase: drawing
To Erase a Large Area
Select the Erase tool from the palette.
Click and drag in the drawing area to erase.
Release to finish erasing.
To Erase a Small Area
Select the Pencil tool from the palette.
Select Transparent from the Dynamic Colors.
Click in the viewing area.
Each pixel clicked is set to transparent which, in effect, erases
the pixel.
See Also
To Flood an Area with a Color
color: drawing
Select the Flood tool from the palette.
Select a static color, static gray, or dynamic color.
(See .)
Click a pixel in the area to be flooded.
The pixel clicked and all adjacent pixels of the same color are
recolored with the selected color. The flooded area extends in all
directions, bounded only by pixels of colors different from the one
clicked.
See Also
To Draw Connected Lines
Select the Polyline tool from the palette.
Click the starting point for the first line in the drawing area.
Click at the end of each line segment.
Double-click at the end of the last line segment.
See Also
To Draw a Polygon
Polygon: drawing
Select the Polygon tool from the palette.
In the drawing area, click the starting point for the first line segment.
Click at the end of each line segment.
Double-click at the end of the last line segment to close the polygon.
A line is drawn from the end of the last line segment to the
starting point of the first line segment.
See Also
To Draw an Ellipse
ellipse: drawing
Select the Ellipse tool from the palette.
Click in the drawing area and drag to stretch the outline of the ellipse.
Release to finish the ellipse.
See Also
To Undo a Drawing Operation
Choose Undo from the Edit menu.
Only the most recent change can be undone.
To Open an Existing Icon
Choose Open from the File menu.
If you have unsaved changes, Icon Editor warns you that your changes
will be lost by loading another icon. Click Cancel to cancel the Open
command. Click OK if you don't want to save your changes.
Type the name of the icon file you want to load or select it from the
list.
Click Open.
When you load a file, the output format is automatically set to the
format of the file you load.
See Also
To Save an Icon
Icon Editor: saving icon
Choose an output format from the Options menu:
XBM for two-color X bitmap format
XPM for multicolor X pixmap format (the default)
Choose Save from the File menu.
If the icon is unnamed or you choose Save As, Icon Editor prompts
you for a file name. Type a file name and then click OK.
See Also
To Save an Icon with a New Name
Icon Editor: saving icon with new name
Choose Save As from the File menu.
Type the file name under which you want to save the icon.
Click Save.
See Also
To Start a New Icon
Choose New from the File menu.
If you have unsaved changes, Icon Editor warns you that your changes
will be lost by starting a new icon. Click Cancel to cancel the New
command. Click OK if you don't want to save your changes.
Icon Editor clears the work area and resizes it to the default 32x32 size.
The maximum size for an icon is 256×256.
See Also
To Resize the Current Icon
Icon Editor: resizing icon
icons: resizing
Choose Resize Icon from the Edit menu.
Edit the current width and height in the dialog box to specify the
new size.
Click OK.
If you make the icon smaller, the right and bottom edges are clipped
off. If you make the icon larger, the existing image remains in the
upper left of the icon.
See Also
To Select an Area of the Icon
icons: selecting parts of
Select the Selection tool (bottom right of the tool palette).
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box around the area you want to select.
A box flashes around the selected area.
See Also
To Copy a Region of the Icon
Select the Selection tool (bottom right of the palette).
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box around the area you want to copy.
A box flashes around the selected area.
Choose Copy Area from the Edit menu.
Choose Paste Area from the Edit menu.
Position the outline where you want to paste the copy, and then click.
To paste multiple copies of the region, repeat steps 3 and 4 as many times
as you like.
See Also
To Cut a Region of the Icon
Select the Selection tool (bottom right of the palette).
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box around the area you want to cut.
A box flashes around the selected area.
Choose Cut Area from the Edit menu.
When you cut a portion of an icon, the exposed area becomes "transparent"
(that is, it is filled in with the Transparent color).
After cutting a region, you can paste it back into the image using the
Paste command from the Edit menu.
See Also
To Move a Region of the Icon
Select the Selection tool (bottom right of the palette).
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box around the area you want to move.
A box flashes around the selected area.
Choose Cut Area from the Edit menu.
Choose Paste Area from the Edit menu.
Position the outline where you want to paste the copy, and then click.
To paste multiple copies of the area, you may repeat steps 4 and 5 as many
times as you like.
See Also
To Resize (Scale) a Region of the Icon
Select the Selection tool (bottom right of the palette).
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box around the area you want to resize.
A box flashes around the selected area.
Choose Scale Area from the Edit menu.
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box that defines the size and shape
that you want the scaled image to be.
This box determines how the
selected portion of the image will be scaled; it does not determine
where to place the results.
Position the outline where you want to paste the scaled copy, and
then click.
See Also
To Rotate a Region of the Icon
icons: rotating
rotating icon
Select the Selection tool (bottom right of the palette).
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box around the area you want to rotate.
A box flashes around the selected area.
Choose Rotate Area from the Edit menu and choose Left or Right.
Position the outline where you want to paste the rotated area, and then click.
See Also
To Flip (Mirror) a Region of the Icon
flipping icon
icons: flipping
Select the Selection tool (bottom right of the palette).
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box around the area you want to flip.
A box flashes around the selected area.
Choose Flip Area from the Edit menu and choose Vertical or Horizontal.
Flipping an area creates a pixel-for-pixel mirror image of the selected
area.
See Also
To Add a Hotspot
hotspot in an icon
icons: hotspot
hotspot: adding
hotspot: deleting
Choose Add Hotspot from the Edit menu.
Click the pixel where you want to assign the hotspot.
Bitmap images (XBM format) can be used as special mouse pointer shapes.
The hotspot marks a single pixel that is the true "point" of the pointer.
To Delete a Hotspot
hotspot in an icon
icons: hotspot
hotspot: deleting
Select the hotspot you want to delete.
Choose Delete Hotspot from the Edit menu.
To Capture (Grab) a Region of the Workspace
capturing region of workspace
grabbing region of workspace
display: capturing region of
workspace: capturing region of
Icon Editor: capturing region of workspace
Save your current icon, if necessary.
Choose Grab Screen Image from the Edit menu.
Press mouse button 1 and drag a box around the portion of the workspace
you want to capture. The X-Y size above the work area shows
the size in pixels of the area being grabbed.